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The price of Bitcoin () in Nigeria soared to well above market levels in the midst of the central bank's ongoing efforts to push its citizens into digital currency.
As of writing, the price of 1 BTC on the Nigerian NairaEX crypto exchange is currently 17.8 million Naira, equivalent to an enormous $38,792.
This represents over a 60% premium on the current Bitcoin market price, which is approximately $23,700 at the time of writing.
It comes at a time when Nigeria's central bank has continued to impose limits on cash withdrawals at ATMs as part of an ongoing effort to speed up its transition to a cash-free society.
#Bitcoin is Hope!?
Rupture: Bitcoin sells for a 60% premium in Nigeria (US$37.235) due to increased demand.
The Nigerian Central Bank began capping cash withdrawals at $44 per day at the beginning of the month.
Now leads the world in Google searches for "Buy #Bitcoin " pic.twitter.com/SI861WUhVy
— SHIB Bezos (@BezosCrypto) January 29, 2023
Earlier this month, the central bank imposed a limit on cash withdrawals following a December announcement.
From January of this year. 9, citizens were only allowed to withdraw a maximum of 20,000 ngn (approximately $43.50) from vending machines (vending machines) per day with a cap of 100,000 ngn (approximately $217).
The movement also took place a few days before the launch of new naira notes in an effort to reduce inflation and money laundering. The central bank has established a January deadline. 24 in exchange for the new currency.
However, people had to deal with long lineups when they complained of not having enough time to meet the deadline. This deadline has now been extended to February. 10 according to reports on Jan. 29.
This is not the first time that the Bitcoin bonus has popped up in Nigeria. In February 2021, the central bank banned regulated financial institutions from providing services to cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. This resulted in a 36% BTC premium at that time.
Related: Nigeria set to pass bill recognizing Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies
The recent interest in Bitcoin has also seen Nigeria becoming the leading country for Bitcoin web searches, according to Google Trends.
Rupture: the Nigerian central bank introduced new cash withdrawal limits (20,000 naira ~ $44 per day) and announced that all old naira banknotes will be worthless by the end of January.
Nigeria is leading the „How to buy #Bitcoin“ search worldwide pic.twitter.com/O26si2nHde
— Carl ? MENGER ?? (@CarlBMenger) January 18, 2023
Additionally, on Jan. 26 Reuters reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria launched a domestic card scheme to rival foreign cards like MasterCard and Visa.
The "AfriGo" card system was designed to give Nigerians better access to credit card services and to bypass foreign card charges and often high foreign exchange costs.
